Apple Licenses 1-Click from Amazon.com -- Apple announced that it has licensed Amazon.com's controversial 1-Click ordering patent for use at the online Apple store. Apple is the first company not affiliated with Amazon.com to license the patent. After you sign up for 1-Click ordering, which stores personal billing and shipping information on Apple's servers, you can buy items without going through the typical multi-step ordering process. Although many online retailers offer a variation of 1-Click ordering, Amazon was granted a patent on its implementation in February 2000 (see "Amazon.com Awarded Affiliate Program Patent" in TidBITS-520). Other online merchants and industry figures, such as publisher Tim O'Reilly, have criticized the patent. Apple's license also includes the use of the 1-Click trademark, and is no doubt as much of a marketing opportunity as an improvement to its online ordering. [JLC]

<http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2000/sep/ 18amazon.html>
<http://www.patents.ibm.com/details? pn=US06029141__>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/05833>
<http://www.oreilly.com/ask_tim/amazon_ patent.html>